• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.187-198
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• 2020

This study extracted deforestation area and degraded forestland area, which are potential REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) project candidate areas in Paraguay using Land Cover Map (LCM) and Tree Cover Map (TCM). The REDD+ project objectives scenarios were set three stages: 'afforestation and economic efficiency scenario', 'local capacity reinforcement scenario', and 'Infrastructure-oriented scenario'. And then, we evaluated the project unit suitable area of the REDD+ project. All scenarios selected the evaluation factors for each scenario in addition to the area ratio factors for deforestation area and degraded forestland area and weighted values were extracted by assigning category scores. As a result of the three scenarios comparison analysis, Concepcion state score was the highest. Within Concepcion state, the Belon district had the highest score, making it appropriate as a project unit REDD+ project candidate area in Paraguay, while the San Carlos district had the lowest score. This study can be used as basic data for selecting REDD+ project candidate area in Paraguay, and it is expected to contribute sufficiently to REDD+ project if additional data or information of social, cultural and economic sectors are secured.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.101-107
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• 2018

We identified the main impacts, drivers, and restoration projects for Atlantic Forest in Northwest of the Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil. The objective was to analyze the quantity, distribution, and causes of the environmental crimes in 2000-2014. To verify differences between degraded and restored areas, we performed a t-test; ANOVA for the municipalities with more quantity of crimes, simple linear regression analysis for the relationship between sizes of degraded areas and quantity of seedlings planted, and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) for environmental damages categories and population of the municipalities. The main environmental damages found were deforestation outside permanent preservation area (20%) and those related to Permanent Preservation Area (37%). Environmental crimes in these areas fall into two categories: native and exotic vegetation removal (17%), and impediment to natural regeneration (20%). The average size of the degraded areas was $5,359{\pm}526m^2$, while for restored areas was $3,337{\pm}255m^2$. The sizes of the degraded fragments were similar among the five municipalities with the higher number of environmental crimes (ANOVA: p>0.05, F=1.24; df=241). The number of seedlings planted was positively related to the sizes of the degraded fragments (p<0.001, $R^2=0.53$). Segregation between the less and the most populous municipalities was found with the PCA analysis along PC1 (51.7%), while PC2 represented 19.2% of the total variation. The most populous municipalities showed the highest number of environmental crimes, and the majority of degraded areas were recovered by planting native seedlings. Atlantic Forest fragments need to be recognized and preserved as an ecosystem with a unique ecological function by the population and public administration.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.49-57
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• 2013

Malaysia possesses about 1.56 million ha of Peat Swamp Forest (PSF). The PSF safeguard enormous biological diversity, while providing crucial benefits for the sustainable development of human communities. Numbers of threatened plant species are associated with the PSF, including the commercially important Gonystylus bancanus timber. To prevent significant losses of biodiversity, it is important to manage the PSF for both biological conservation and sustainable use. Equally important is to restore all degraded PSF in an attempt to ensure the PSF ecosystem is suitable for the vegetation to grow and rehabilitate back to the normal condition. Prior to plan any forest restoration program, there is a need to properly map the degraded PSF in order to estimate the forest conditions and determine the vegetations status. Most of the time this need to be done at a landscape level and requires a technology that can provide accurate, timely and reliable information for the planner to make decision. This paper describes a study using geospatial technology in combination with ground survey to classify the degraded PSF in South East Pahang Peat Swamp Forest (SEPPSF), Malaysia, into different degree of vegetation classes. With map accuracy of about 83%, the technique proved to be useful in delineating the different degree of PSF degradation from which the information can be used to properly plan forest restoration program in the area. The final output which is in the form of map can be used in developing a Restoration Master Plan for the degraded PSF areas.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.104 no.3
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• pp.352-359
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• 2015

This study was conducted to evaluate how the special protection area designations of degraded trails effect on the soil and vegetation recovery of degraded trails. The study areas were established on an opened trail and a 16-year closed trail, which was prohibited to enter after the designation as a special protection area for recovery, at Bukhansan National Park. Soil core sampling and measurements of vegetation cover were performed to compare soil and vegetation properties of the trails. Soil bulk density increased and soil water total nitrogen decreased on the opened trail, while no significant differences were found on bulk density, soil water, total nitrogen, acidity, and organic matter on the closed trail. On the opened trail, vegetation cover was seemed to be degraded, because vegetation litter cover ratio was low and barren rock cover ratio was high. On the closed trail, litter rock barren cover ratio of the closed trail was recovered, but only limited recovery was found on vegetation cover by applying environmental damage condition rating class. In conclusion, the closed trail was recovered by designation of special protection area, while difference in recovery progress of soil and vegetation was found. Therefore, designation of special protection area of degraded area should be based on scientific basis of recovery characteristics of the area. In order to improve the effectiveness of special protection area system, further specific standards for special protection area designation and management would be needed, considering ecological and social importance of target areas.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.205-211
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• 2014

Focused on Mt. Bogdkhan nature reserve in Mongolia, this study was conducted as a fundamental research to discover a tendency and characteristics of forest damage and to draw up measures for proper plans of forest restoration through an analysis of year-to year change using satellite images. In specific, land cover mapping was conducted by using Landsat images from 1994 to 2011, and then year-to year change was analyzed to investigate the features of forest damage in Mt. Bogdkhan. The results showed that the whole area of a reservation in Mongolia in 2011 was about $416.89km^2$; among them, forest area was $167,87km^2$, accounting for about 40.3%, followed by bare patch and grassland area (58.6%) and urban dry area (1.1%). In particular, compared in 1994, the area of forest in 2011 has increased by $6.12km^2$; while bare patch and grassland area has decreased by $10.81km^2$. Primary causes of forest degradation occurred in Mt. Bogdkhan nature reserve included illegal logging for fuel, forest and grassland degradation caused by domestic animals grazing, man-made forest fire, and disaster caused by insect pest.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.120-128
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• 2016

Forest sequesters large terrestrial carbon which is stored in the biomass of tree and plays a key role in reducing atmospheric carbon. Thus, the objectives of the present study were to assess the growing stock, above ground biomass and carbon in trees of Ponda watershed of Rajouri district (J&K). IRS-P6 LISS-III satellite data of October 2010 was used for preparation of land use/land cover map and forest density map of the study area by visual interpretation. The growing stock estimation was done for the study area as well as for the sample plots laid in forest and agriculture fields. The growing stock and biomass of trees were estimated using species specific volume equations and using specific gravity of wood, respectively. The total growing stock in the study area was estimated to be $0.25million\;m^3$ which varied between $85.94m^3/ha$ in open pine to $11.58m^3/ha$ in degraded pine forest. However in agriculture area, growing stock volume density of $14.85m^3/ha$ was recorded. Similarly, out of the total biomass (0.012 million tons) and carbon (0.056 million tons) in the study area, open pine forest accounted for the highest values of 43.74 t/ha and 19.68 t/ha and lowest values of 5.68 t/ha and 2.55 t/ha, respectively for the degraded pine forest. The biomass and carbon density in agriculture area obtained was 5.49 t/ha and 2.47 t/ha, respectively. In all the three forest classes Pinus roxburghii showed highest average values of growing stock volume density, biomass and carbon.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.25-36
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• 2020

Area exclosure is a widely practiced intervention of restoring degraded lands though its impact in sequestering terrestrial and soil carbon is scanty. The study was initiated to investigate the effect of exclosure of different ages on carbon sequestration potential of restoring degraded dryland ecosystems in eastern Tigray, northern Ethiopia. Twelve plots each divided into three layers were randomly selected from 5, 10 and 15 years old exclosures and paired adjacent open grazing land. Tree and shrub biomasses were determined using destructive sampling while herb layer biomass was determined using total harvest. The average total biomass obtained were 13.6, 24.8, 27.1, and 55.5 Mg ha^-1 for open grazing, 5 years, 10 years, and 15 years exclosures respectively. The carbon content of plant species ranged between 48 to 53 percent of a dry biomass. The total carbon stored in the 5 years, 10 years and 15 years age exclosures were 39 Mg C ha^-1, 46.3 Mg C ha^-1, and 64.6 Mg C ha^-1 respectively while in the open grazing land the value was 24.7 Mg C ha^-1. Carbon stock is age dependent and increases with age. The difference in total carbon content between exclosures and open grazing land varied between 14.3-40 Mg C ha^-1. Although it is difficult to extrapolate this result for a longer future, the average annual carbon being sequestered in the oldest exclosure was about 2.7 Mg C ha^-1 yr^-1. In view of improving degraded area and sequestering carbon, area exclosures are promising options.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.18 no.6
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• pp.73-83
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• 2015

The objective of this study is to establish implications for forest restoration planning in North Korea by analyzing spatio-temporal forest changes and detecting bio-physical factors driving forest degraded. We measured the relationship and spatial distribution between shifting cultivation and sparse forest. We also analyzed between degraded forest land and ecological variables by binary logistic regression to find biophysical drivers of forest degradation and deforestation in North Korea. Between the sparse forest and the shifting cultivation, a positive relationship is found (r=0.91) and scattered discontinuously throughout the country (Moran's I = -1, Z score = -13.46 (p=0.000)). The sparse forest showed a negative relationship with the warmest month(bio 9), the coldest month(bio10), and the minimum of soil water contents (swc_min), while the shifting cultivation had a negative relationship with the warmest month(bio 9) and the minimum of soil water contents(swc_min). However, the most critical drivers convert forests into sloping farmland were the three months rainfall in summer(bio8) and the yearly mean of soil water contents. Such results reflect the growth period of crops which overlaps with the rainy season in North Korea and the recent land reclamation of uplands where the soil water contents are maintained with a dense forest. When South Korea aids forest restoration projects in North Korea, in consideration of food shortage due to North Korea's cropland deficiency, terrace farmlands where soil water contents can be maintained should be excluded from the priority restoration area. In addition, an evaluation method for selecting a potential restoration area must be modified and applied based on multiple criteria including altitude and socio-economic factors in the respective regions.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.172-186
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• 2017

The effects of application of fuel-reduction treatment in wildfire management has not been tested in dry forests of Ghana. Therefore, the short-term ecological effects of prescribed burning and hand thinning treatments followed by experimental wildfire were investigated in degraded forests and Tectona grandis forest plantations in two forest reserves of different levels of dryness in Ghana. The results showed that more trees were killed in prescribed burning (average of 41% in degraded forest and 18% in plantations) than hand thinning (7.2% in degraded forests and 8% in plantation). More tree seedlings were also killed in prescribed burning (72%) than hand thinning (47%). The mortality of trees and seedlings were greater in Worobong South forest, a less dry forest reserve than the Afram Headwaters forest, a drier forest reserve. Fuel treatment especially prescribed burning compared to the control reduced wildfire effects on forest canopy particularly in the less dry forest and tree mortality especially in the drier forest. Prescribed burning temporarily increased pH, exchangeable potassium (52%) and available phosphorus (82%) in the surface soils of the entire plots. The two fuel treatment methods did not have much influence on basal area, organic matter and total nitrogen. Nevertheless, they were able to reduce the adverse wildfire effects on soil pH, exchangeable potassium, available phosphorus, organic matter and total nitrogen concentrations. Fuel treatments therefore have potential application in dry forest management in Ghana due to their ability to retain important forest ecological traits after a wildfire incidence.

• Proceedings of the Plant Resources Society of Korea Conference
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• 2018.10a
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• pp.24-24
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• 2018

Degraded plantation forests are increasing because of unfavorable forestry conditions prevailing in Japan, including falling timber prices, increasing operational costs, and aging and declining forestry workforce. To remedy this situation, appropriate management strategy is required. This study introduces the challenges of Odai Town, Mie Prefecture that employed a new management strategy by evaluating site suitability for conifer forests and that proposes a new forest management regime of planting deciduous trees in unsuitable sites. The site suitability for conifer forests was evaluated from two aspects: the natural site conditions and the relationship among site conditions, growth, and damage by Anaglyptus subfasciatus Pic. in Cryptomeria japonica D. Don and Chamaecyparis obtusa Sieb. Et Zucc. forests. By analyzing the relationship among site conditions, growth, and insect damage based on field data obtained in plantation forests, growth evaluation and insect damage evaluation maps were developed. Based on the natural forest investigation, natural site condition maps for C. japonica and C. obtusa were established. Furthermore, by integrating these evaluation maps with the forest road maps showing the accessibility to the forest, the forest management regime for the whole plantation area of Odai Town was established. The forest management regime map indicates the sites suitable for forestry: suitable for long-rotation, short-rotation, and potential sites for short-rotation. The sites unsuitable for forestry were considered to be more suitable for broadleaved forests. Clear-cutting was conducted in a small area and different seral stage saplings (approximately 20 deciduous tree species) suitable to the site conditions were planted in an area of $80-120m^2$ protected by deer-fences. This might establish a forest composed of many species with a multilayer vertical forest structure in a short period. The planted saplings were distributed neither randomly nor uniformly to reflect the natural distribution of trees in the forest. A challenge to develop new products using the deciduous trees has started, such as wood chips for preparing smoked food, essential oil, and deodorizer. As these challenges have just begun, their effects on enhancing sustainable resource management are still being monitored. Even with the challenges, this regime can be of high value as a management strategy to remedy the situation of expansion of degraded forests in Japan.